Rebels and Leaders
by ZombieSpaceKittie
Summary: Ava Kaine always knew she was never meant for Abnegation, everyone knew that, even her best friend Beatrice Prior, who she has sworn to protect every since they were young. But what happens when Beatrice follows her to Dauntless? And how will she get them both through initiation when a certain Dauntless leader finds his amusement in proving to her he is a force to be reckoned with?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys, so I know I haven't worked on this story in a while but I'm giving it another shot, and my first step in doing so is editing the chapters a bit. I spaced the paragraphs out to make it a bit easier to read and changed a few things here and there, nothing major, just added some more conversation and fixed some structure errors! I also entered it in an inkitt contest! So if you like it, please go and vote for it at **** stories/51080**

I was never meant for Abnegation. I knew that, my parents knew that, even the whole faction knew that. I didn't have many friends, none that I actually liked, except for Beatrice that is, and only because she bugged the living daylights out of me after I beat up a Dauntless kid who was picking on her when we were younger, and truthfully she didn't quite fit in herself, although she was better at pretending than me. Everyone else seemed to look at me with fear or hatred because I wasn't like them. I wasn't selfless, or caring, or even nice.

My parents treat me just the same, as some sort of outcast, always pointing out my flaws, never looking at me with understanding as a parent should, only with resentment, I was their only child and here I was a total disappointment. So it wasn't really a huge surprise when my aptitude test came back Dauntless, and I slowly trickled my blood into the sizzling coals. It was however a huge surprise when Beatrice followed in my footsteps.

"What the hell are you doing Beatrice?" I hiss as she walks slowly to stand beside me. I knew she was never meant for Abnegation, Amity maybe, even Erudite, but Dauntless? Beatrice looks at me with uncertainty.

"I-I don't know. I just did it." She says looking at her feet.

"You won't survive in Dauntless, and I can't protect you forever, especially not there." I say bluntly. Beatrice looks up at me with a playful smirk.

"Sure you shouldn't have picked Candor?"

"You mistake my logic for openness". I scoff.

"Right, so Erudite then". She grins.

"One of these days Prior your smart mouth is going to get you into trouble." I say rolling my eyes playfully.

The adrenaline rushed through my body as I caught up to the train and gripped the handle, dragging myself into the train cart. My lungs stung and my legs felt like jello, but I made it. A small smile crept onto my face, but soon disappeared as I realized Beatrice still hadn't made it on. I shuffled on my knees back to the opening where I saw Beatrice, determination in her eyes as she ran as fast as she could to catch up to the train, she was close, but not close enough

"Beatrice! Here, take my hand!" I yell as I thrust my arm towards her.

"No. No I can do it." My eyes flickered to the edge of the walkway, if Beatrice didn't get on soon, she would be nothing more than a grey stain on the concrete below.

"Beatrice!" I hiss. "Do it now!" Just as the edge came inches from her feet, Beatrice leapt onto the train, knocking me over in the process.

"Dammit Beatrice do you have a death wish?" I say pushing her off of me, my heart still pounding from the adrenaline.

"What, afraid if I would have fallen you would have missed me? Or felt any other emotion besides annoyed?" She laughed.

"Oh ha ha. Real funny, I have other emotions you know." I say poking her in the shoulder.

"Oh right, I forgot, brooding." She says. I laugh and elbow her playfully in the side.

"Well that was some entrance." A voice says from behind us. We both turn around to see a dark haired Candor girl smiling at us.

"Hi, my name's Christina." I stare at her for a moment, not sure if I should return her kindness or not. Beatrice rolls her eyes at me and gives the girl a warm smile.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Beatrice, and this is my friend," she pauses and elbowing me in the side. I let out a small hiss and glare at her.

"Ava." I finally say. "My name is Ava."

"Not much of a talker huh?"

"It's not the talking part that bothers me, it's the people." Christina lets out a laugh.

"You sure you're not a fellow Candor?"

"I wish people would quite asking me that." I sigh. Christina laughs again.

"I like you." She says.

"What's not to like?" I ask with a smirk.

"Um you guys?" Beatrice says pointing outside the train. "I think we have to jump off?"

"Well here goes nothing." I say. "Together?" Christina asks holding out her hand.

"Together." Beatrice says and grabs our hands.

Somehow I managed to land on my feet as I jumped off, but the momentum of Beatrice and Christina threw me off balance and I went flying face first into the gravel. Instead of yelling like I wanted to do, all I could do was laugh, causing the other two girls to follow suite.

"Listen up!" came a deep voice. Startled I turned around, only to see a Dauntless man standing on the edge of the building, looking through us not really at us. I recognized that look. I only got to see it for five minutes at a time, a few days out of the month when I got to look in the mirror, but I knew it nonetheless.

"My name is Eric, I'm one of the five Dauntless leaders. The way into the compound is down there". He says nonchalantly and gestures to a large hole at the bottom of the building.

"We have to jump?" asked an Erudite boy.

"That would be correct."

"Well is there at least water down there?"

"Jump and find out." Eric hissed, obviously getting annoyed with the boy.

"Hey Ava." Beatrice whispered nudging me in the side. "Look it's your long lost family."

She gestures towards Eric and lets out a giggle causing Christina to snicker as well.

"Wouldn't surprise me one bit if I were adopted." I smile.

"Something funny initiates?" Eric growls at us. Beatrice and Christina both stiffen, trying to look anywhere but at Eric. He was intimidating I'll give him that, too bad it didn't work on me.

"Oh no sir." I say sarcastically, "Just admiring the view."

Beatrice and Christina look at me with wide eyes. Eric just stared at me blankly, no emotion showing in his dark eyes.

"You got a big mouth for a Stiff." He says bluntly. "But since you're so confident, why don't you show us how it's done and go first." A small smirk crept across his face as if he were amused with himself, but was gone in an instant.

"Fine." I say beginning to walk towards the edge, I wouldn't let him get the better of me, I'll show him just how Dauntless a "stiff" could be.

"No." says Beatrice. "I'll go."

I look at her a bit surprised. Eric gave her a "well go then" look and gestured towards the edge. Beatrice took a deep breath and climbed atop the ledge. My heart pounded in my chest. You can do this Beatrice. I thought. Be brave. Beatrice took off her dull grey Abnegation jacket and tossed it aside.

"Whoo, take it off stiff!" A Candor boy called out. I shot him a glare, and he gave me a wink. I scoffed and turned my attention back to Beatrice, who seemed frozen a top the ledge, looking down.

"Today initiate." Eric said, sounding bored.

Beatrice took another deep breath and stepped off, disappearing into the darkness below. I ran to the edge almost instantly. Did she make it? Was she ok? But all I could see as I looked down was darkness.

"What are you waiting for Stiff," Eric says coldly. "You're next."

I give him a go to hell look and jump off the ledge without a second thought.

My heart leapt out of my chest as I hit the net. A net, of course. Suddenly I was being pulled out, a pair of strong hands steading me as I gained my footing. "What's your name?" The man grabbing me asked. For some reason he looked so familiar to me, where had I seen him before?

"Hello," he says, waving a hand in front of me. "Is that a hard one?"

I snap out of my thoughts and shake my head.

"No, no, my name is Ava."

"Second jumper, Ava!" he yells and chanting and cheering booms around us.

"Welcome to Dauntless." He smiles. I give him a nod and go to stand beside Beatrice. She gives me an accomplished look, and I smile warmly at her.

"You do have a death wish don't you Beatrice?"

"No, that would be you, and it's Tris now." I nod my head in agreement.

"Tris then."


	2. Chapter 2

"My name is Four, usually I work in the control room but for the next six weeks I'll be your instructor." The familiar man who pulled me out the net stated.

"Four, like the number?" Christina blurts out.

"Exactly like the number." Four smirks.

"What one through three were already taken?" She blurts out again. I sigh. Candors. Four steps forward.

"What's your name initiate?" He questions dryly.

"Christina." She grins.

"Well, Christina." Four snaps, his face inches from hers.

"First rule you learn from me, if you want to survive in Dauntless, is keep your mouth shut." Christina's eyes snap to her feet, her face flushed. I've never seen a Candor's face turn so red in my life. I snicker to myself.

"Now, follow me."

Four led us around the compound, showing us the pit, which was remarkable to say the least, and the Chasm, which apparently every year at least one person winds up at the bottom of. A chill runs down my spine as I think of all the ways they could have ended up down there.

"And while you are going through initiation you will be staying in here." Four gestures to a large room full of small beds.

"Boys or girls?" Someone asks.

"Both." He states. "And if you love this you're really going to love the bathroom."

Everyone gasps as they see what he's talking about, the wall is lined with toilets on one end and showers on the other, with no stalls for any privacy. I roll my eyes, well this should be lovely.

"You Candors should enjoy this, everything out and the open and everything." Four smirks and shoves past Tris.

"Dinner is at five, which gives you about thirty minutes to change and burn your old clothes."

Four disappears out of sight, and everyone starts shuffling around, claiming beds. I walk to a bed towards the back of the room in a corner, Tris takes the bed beside me, and Christina takes one beside her.

"Can you believe that guy?" Christina snorts, yanking off her shoes.

"What, did you expect the Dauntless to great us with warm hugs and smiles?" I ask. "Last time I checked that was an Amity thing." I give Christina a smirk and she chunks her shoe at me, I catch it and give her a cocky grin.

"Smart ass." She says rolling her eyes.

"How did you put up with her for so long?" Christina says to Tris, who is staring at her new Dauntless clothing laid out on her bed.

"What's wrong?" Christina asks, zipping up her skin tight black pants.

"Abnegation aren't really big about getting dressed in front of people." I say in a low voice.

Tris looks up at me, her eyes full of that determination I had seen before she jumped on the train. She then pulls off her dress, and begins fumbling with her shirt and pants. I give her a nod and yank the hair tie out of my hair, letting red locks fall around my face and over my shoulders, then began to do the same.

"Well, well, well," the Candor boy from earlier says, looking me up and down. "Who would have thought, a Stiff with a loud mouth and a body?"

I tighten my jaw and try to ignore him, slipping on my shirt, and stepping into my pants.

"Leave her alone Peter." Christina growls. Peter lets out a laugh.

"See you around Stiff." He winks before walking off.

"What an idiot." Christina scoffs. And we all head towards the dining hall.

We stand around with our plates in hand, trying to find a place to sit amongst the crowds of people.

"Should we?" Tris asks. Gesturing to a few seats open beside Four. I roll my eyes and take a seat in front of the Erudite boy, putting Tris beside Four, and Christina at my other side. Tris and I stare at the food at our plate for a moment, both unsure what to do with it.

"What never seen a hamburger before?" Christina laughs.

"Abnegation have a mostly plant based diet with no salt or seasoning." The Erudite boy in front of me says.

"What textbook did you swallow?" Christina laughs.

"I'm Will, Erudite, this is Al." He gestures to a tall broad boy beside him.

"Christina." She says. Tris smiles.

"I'm Tris."

Al and Will look at me expectantly.

"Oh and this is broody." Christina jokes.

"Ava." I say, rolling my eyes.

"Nice show on the roof earlier by the way, I've never seen an Abnegation as outspoken as you."

Will smiles at me.

"Yeah well there's a reason I'm not in Abnegation anymore." I grumble.

"So how did you two become friends anyway?" Christina asks Tris and I. "No offense but you guys seem like two totally different people."

"When I was younger I got bullied pretty bad. Mostly by some of the Dauntless kids at school. One day three of them pushed me down and took my bag, Ava saw and punched one in the face so hard she broke his nose, the other two ran off, and well we've been friends ever since." Tris smiles at me and I return it.

"You broke a Dauntless's nose?" Al asked in shock.

"Ass deserved it." I huff.

"An Abnegation, beating up a Dauntless? That's practically unheard of!" Christina laughs.

"Yeah well Abnegation wasn't very happy about it." I say examining my food.

"Enough talk about your old factions." Four snaps. "You're Dauntless now."

"Were you a transfer?" Tris asks sincerely. Four gives her and unreadable look.

"Are you serious?" He asks.

"Yeah."

"What makes you think you can talk to me?" Four says dryly.

Tris looks down at her plate in defeat. My blood boiled. What an asshole. I was getting ready to tell him, when to my surprise, Tris spoke up.

"Must be because you're so approachable, you know like a bucket of nails".

I couldn't help but let out chuckle. I liked this new Beatrice.

"Careful." Four says, taking a sip of his drink.

"Wow, you really do have a death wish." I smirk at her.

"No, you're just rubbing off on me."

I give her a playful angry look before busting out laughing.

"Four." A familiar asshole voice comes from behind us. Eric. He strolls up and gives Four a not so friendly slap on the back. Four doesn't seem to be big fan of Eric himself.

"What do you need, Eric." He sighs.

"Max has been wondering why you've been avoiding him?" He asks, a false concern in his voice.

"Tell Max I wasn't interested two years ago and I'm still not interested now." Four says dryly.

"Ah, he's still trying to recruit you?"

"That would be the case."

Eric pauses for a moment. His eyes fall on me, and all of the amusement he was apparently having torturing Four fell from his face. His eyes were cold and hard, and staring right at me.

"Aren't you going to introduce me." He says to Four without averting his gaze, his voice void of emotion. Four sighs and turns to us.

" That's Tris, Ava, Christina, Will, and Al."

Eric grunts.

"Too many Stiffs around here these days." He says before turning on his heels and stomping off.

Four's body tenses up for half a second before he snatches up his plate.

"Training begins in ten!" He growls before storming off.

We arrive in the training room right on time. Four is standing in the middle of the room, his arms behind his back, and an annoyed look on his face, but what's new? I think to myself. Hmm. Wonder if that's what people say to themselves about me? I shake myself back to reality and find Eric is leaned against the back wall of the room. His eyes burning holes in me.

God what is that guys problem? I glare back at him and he clenches his jaw. My heart picks up pace when he begins walking in my direction buy slows down when he stops by Four and averts his gaze from me.

"There will be three stages of training." Four begins. "The first stage, your physical abilities will be tested, the second is emotionally, and the third is mentally."

"You will be ranked after the first stage" Eric cuts in. "The top ten will move on to the next stage, the rest of you," Eric smirks, apparently finding amusement in the next part. "will be cut."

"Cut?" Christina blurts out.

"Cut." Eric says curtly.

"What will happen to us?" Asks Will.

"Well you can't go back home so, you'll become factionless."

"What?! No one told us this?" Christina gasps.

"What, would it have changed your mind knowing? If so then you should leave now because if you were truly Dauntless it wouldn't matter. You chose us so, now we get to choose you."

Eric's eyes find mine again and I clench my jaw, holding myself back from saying something he'd most likely make me regret later, but he must have sensed it.

"Got something to say initiate?" He asks. Screw it.

"You know if you're going to try and say something to me, you should try using my name."

Eric steps in front of me, his face so close to mine I can feel his breath.

"Oh right, sorry." He says in a deadly low tone. "Got something to say, STIFF." Eric grins with accomplishment and Peter and his band of misfits snicker.

Fire rises in my stomach and my body begins to tremble. I'll make him eat those words.

"Aw, did I upset you Stiff?"

I feel Tris grab my hand next to me and I try to steady my breathing.

"Never seen a Stiff so upset. Isn't that too selfish for you or something?" Eric pry's some more.

"I don't have to take this." I say turning around to leave, but Eric grabs my arm and spins me around to face him again. His grip so tight it makes my eyes water.

"Oh I think you do." He growls, all amusement out of his voice. "You better watch yourself Stiff, and remind yourself who you are talking too."

He releases my arm with a shove. My hand goes to my stinging arm where small purple bruises have already begun to form. Eric walks back to the middle of the room and stands by Four again, who's body is tensed up once more. Four begins to explain the first stage, but I don't listen, I'm too busy trying to settle my nerves. I so very badly wanted to wipe that smirk right off Eric's face, but even though he was a total asshole, he still was a Dauntless leader, and my life was literally in his hands.

"You must have really pissed that guy off." Christina says sitting down beside me on my bed.

"He must have not taken the whole roof thing to well." Will says leaning against the wall.

"But then again Dauntless aren't all hugs and smiles are they." Christina elbows me and I can't help but smile. Touché Christina. Touché.

"I thought you said my big mouth would get me into trouble." Tris smiles, "but here you are getting your big mouth into trouble instead. Hmm who would have thought?" She says sarcastically.

We all have a laugh and I look down at my arm where a huge purple hand print has formed. I grimace as I poke the skin.

"Holy crap, he did that to you?" Christina gasps.

"Yeah it doesn't hurt though." I lie.

"I know you have that whole outspoken thing going on," She adds, "But I'd be careful if I were you, something's definitely up with that guy."

She was right, something definitely was up with him, he was a Dauntless leader who wanted everyone to know just how powerful he was, and if I wasn't careful I would end up an example to the rest of the initiates. But I'm not Abnegation, and careful just isn't in my nature.


	3. Chapter 3

"Get up initiates!" Four yells. "Be in the training room in ten minutes!"

I groan and roll onto my stomach, pressing my face into my pillow.

"I take it you're not a morning person." Christina says with a yawn.

"If you think she's already grumpy, you should see her in the mornings, she's terrible." Tris laughs.

I get the sudden urge to shove her off her bed but I just groan again instead.

"Is she trying to communicate?" asks Christina.

"Oh yes, in the mornings she only communicates in a series of grunts and groans. Words usually start forming around lunch time."

Tris and Christina burst into a fit of laughter and suddenly my urge becomes more uncontainable and I stand up and give her firm shove, which only makes them laugh even more. I sigh and begin getting dressed. I definitely wasn't looking forward to training, not after yesterday when Eric made it pretty clear I was a target. But I wouldn't let him get the better of me, not this time. I didn't care who he was, leader or no leader, I'd show him who HE was screwing with.

"Ready to get going?" Tris asks.

"As I'll ever be."

When we arrived in the training room rows of punching bags were lined up in front of us. We would begin with them and gradually work up to fighting one another. Four showed us a few techniques and then left us to practice them on our own with the punching bags.

So far there wasn't any sign of Eric, which was a relief. As I threw a few punches the adrenaline began rushing through my body, all of the pent up anger I had been carrying I released with each punch. It felt good. I looked over at Tris, she was barely even moving the punching bag, and her stance was all off. I was about to go over and help her when a heavy hand landed on my shoulder.

"Why'd you stop punching?" Eric says in a low voice. His face right by my ear.

Startled I jerk away, knocking myself into the punching bag. Eric lets out an eerie laugh, and I furrow my brow.

"What do you want?" I snap.

"What do I want?" He says raising his voice. "I want you to answer my question!"

I silently contemplate if gouging out a Dauntless leader's eyes would get me factionless or dead, I decide it would and restrain myself. Eric gives me a look I can't quite read and says,

"Fine, since you think you're so ready, go get in the ring."

He gestures to a large mat on the floor a few feet away. I look at him in disbelief.

"You deaf Stiff?! He yells. "Get in the ring!"

I decided to do what he says and step onto the mat. I give him a "now what?" look and he smirks.

"Edward!" He calls out. "In the ring!"

The tall blonde haired boy looks at me and hesitates.

"Are you kidding me?" Asks Four strolling up beside Eric. "They aren't ready for this yet."

"They're ready whenever I say they're ready." Eric growls. "Well what are you waiting for?!" He snaps at Edward. "GET IN THE RING!"

Edward gives me an apologetic look as he steps in.

"The fight ends when one of you are unable to continue." Eric states. "Our one of you concedes." Four adds.

"Those are the olds rules, the new rules are, no one concedes." Eric says expressionless.

"Good thing we didn't have those rules when you and I fought." Four jabs. Eric narrows his eyes but ignores Four's comment.

"The fight starts now."

Edward hesitantly walks towards me, his fists up in front of his face. My heart beats out of my chest. I would never be able to beat Edward in a fight. Edward, the Erudite who read fighting manuals for fun. Eric knew that too. That's why he's doing this. He wants Edward to beat me, finds amusement in the thought even. My face turns red as anger heats my insides. I mimic Edward's stance and take a step towards him, hesitance still apparent in his eyes. Good. I think.

I lurch forward and punch him right in the nose. His head snaps back and I can tell I surprised him. Edward's face hardens a bit as he wipes the blood from his nose, gladly accepting the challenge.

He jumps and punches at me but I'm faster than he is and I dodge it, grabbing him by his wrist and twisting it behind his back as hard as I can. Edward lets out a grunt and swipes my legs from underneath me, and I fall face first in the mat with a thud. I go to jump up but he's already there and catches me in the jaw with his fist. Pain shoots through my face and I hit the mat again.

He comes at me and I go to kick but he catches my leg and slings me across the room. My head hits the ground pretty hard and my vision blurs.

No. No. This can't happen. I can't let him beat me, I won't give Eric the satisfaction. As Edward comes towards me I slide myself underneath his legs and kick him forcefully with both feet, throwing him off balance and knocking him to the ground. I don't waste any time and climb on top of him punching him one good time in the face again.

Blood spurts from his nose in a heavy stream this time and I know I've broken it. A wave of accomplishment rushes through me but is interrupted when Edward knees me hard in the stomach, picks me up, and slams me to the ground. The sharp pain causes my vision to blur again and makes me want to vomit.

I feel Edward on top of me and pain shoots through my face again snapping my head back into the ground with a sickly crack. My vision goes dark and I feel as if I'm about to lose consciousness. I'm done. He won.

"She's done." Edward calls out. "She can't go on any further."

"Did I say the fight was over?" Growls Eric. "She's done!" Edward snaps back.

"Finish it!" Eric yells.

"No."

"No?" Eric says menacingly through clenched teeth.

"That's enough!" Yells Four. "The fights over, Edward has won."

I don't hear Eric say anything else although I'm sure he's fuming by now.

"Get her up." Four says, and I feel arms lift me off the ground. I let my pounding head fall into their chest, who I'm assuming is Edward.

"I'll take her to the infirmary." He says.

"I'm coming too." I hear Tris say, sounding panicked. Then everything goes silent.

I wake up with my head still pounding and groan.

"You awake?" I hear Edward say softly. I open my eyes to see him and Tris standing over me.

"How long have I been out?" I ask rubbing my head.

"A few hours." Tris says, concern in her eyes.

"I'm really, _really_ sorry Ava." Edward apologizes.

"Don't worry about it." I try and smile but it only makes my face hurt more. "You just got lucky is all." I joke. Edward lets out a small laugh. "How's that nose by the way?" I mock.

"You should see the other guy." He teases back, and I laugh.

"Probably still strikingly beautiful I'm sure."

Tris sighs. "Only you can still be cocky after getting the crap beat out of you."

"How'd you get that guy so pissed off at you anyway?" Edward says, and I know he is referring to Eric.

Tris looks at me sternly. "What did you say to him this time Ava?"

I give her an innocent look and say, "I didn't say anything."

Tris lets out a sarcastic laugh and glares at me.

"Ava." She says.

"What?!" All I did was ask what he wanted."

"And how did you ask it?" She says quizzically. I sigh. The girl knows me too well.

"The guys an ass." I growl.

"Dually noted." Eric says sarcastically as he steps through the door. Of course.

"Get out." He says bluntly. Edward and Tris give me a sympathetic look before heading out the door. I roll my eyes and go to get up, not wanting to be anywhere near him.

"You. Stay." He barks and slams the door shut. I plop back down on the bed and glare at him.

"What, come to finish the job?" I say in a low voice.

An expression I can't quite place comes across his face, looking something like remorse, but I know better than that.

"How's your head?" He asks, void of any emotion.

"Why do you care?"

"I don't!"

"Then why'd you ask!?"

Eric pauses for a moment and sighs. "You're mouthy, cocky, and disrespectful. You need to watch yourself Stiff, learn a little respect for your superiors. Dauntless train soldiers not rebels."

"I'll learn respect when you learn my name." I snap.

Eric huffs. "You aren't really good at learning your lessons are you Stiff?"

"I'd learn lessons if you'd actually teach me any, you know besides torturing me instead."

"Maybe I should try a little harder then." He smirks.

"Yeah, maybe." I say sardonically.

He huffs and disappears out the door.


	4. Chapter 4

I left the infirmary after my head decided to stop pounding for a bit, and headed to the dining hall to meet the others. I see Tris, Christina, Will, and Al seated at a table towards the back and I take a seat beside them.

"Yikes!" Christina blurts out as I sit down.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I retort, furrowing my brow.

"I-I mean, wow, you look great!" Christina corrects.

"You still need to work on your lying skills Candor." I smirk.

"I'm just glad you're okay." Tris says, relief in her eyes.

"Tris, I got knocked unconscious, I didn't die!"

"Yeah well when Eric made us leave the infirmary I didn't think I'd ever see you again! What he want anyway?" She asks expectantly.

"Probably to rub it in no doubt." Will cut in.

"He just asked how my head was." I shrug. Tris and the others look at me with disbelief.

"He asked if you were okay?" Al asks. Was he being sarcastic about it?"

"I don't know, I couldn't really tell but I don't think so."

"Well what else did he say?" Pry's Christina. "He had to have said something else."

I really didn't feel like rehashing the whole conversation to them, especially the part where he said he'd try a bit harder to teach me a lesson, not even I still knew what that meant, and to be honest, it kind of worried me.

"Nothing." I lie. "That was it."

"That's it?" Tris questions suspiciously.

"Yep."

"He just asked you how your head was and left?"

"Yes."

"No sarcastic comments?"

"No, he wasn't being sarcastic."

"I meant from you!" She glares.

"NO!" I say in frustration.

"I take it back," She says. "Maybe you aren't meant for Candor, because you're a terrible liar."

I roll my eyes at her dramatically.

"You know, you keep on getting on his bad side and you're going to end up factionless, or worse." She sighs.

"Well good thing you're here to protect me then." I smile wryly.

"You guys are exhausting." Christina sighs. "Come on, let's go get tattoos!"

I flip through the designs absentmindedly. I really didn't like the thought of getting a tattoo at the moment. Only the dauntless had tattoos and well we hadn't earned a place amongst them yet. Tris had tensed up for some reason when we entered the parlor and she saw Tori, the woman who had given us our aptitude test. I looked at her curiously as she rushed into conversation with her, which Tris doesn't do very often with people, and the fact that Tori didn't look too happy about it. But I wouldn't pry, Tris would tell me what it was all about if she wanted me to know.

"Find one you like yet?" Will says standing beside me.

"No, I think I might go for a piercing instead." I smile.

We arrived in the training room a few minutes late and to my misfortune Four wasn't there, just Eric. Great.

"Nice of you to join us initiates." He says nonchalantly before turning and addressing the room.

"You will all be paired up for fighting today. The pairs are on the board, there are an odd number of you so one of you will have to sit out."

Everyone gathered around the board, anxious to see who they would be fighting. I rolled my eyes. Who would I be fighting today? Peter? Al? _HIM_?

"The first fight is Christina and Molly. The two of you go ahead and get in the ring." He says.

The two girls do as they're told and I give Christina a reassuring smile. Molly was a big girl, with broad shoulders and a mean attitude just like Peter, but if Christina uses her speed against her, she could take her.

"Ava."

The sound of my name startles me.

"You'll be sitting out today." Eric says emotionlessly without looking in my direction.

Did he just call me by my name? And did he actually just let me sit out?

"Same rules apply as yesterday." He says turning his attention to the ring. "Now fight."

The two girls circle one another, fists in front of them, until Molly steps forward and lands a punch in Christina's stomach. Christina's arms go to her middle almost instinctively, giving Molly a good opportunity at her face, which she took, knocking Christina on her back.

Molly charges at her but Christina gets to her feet in time to dodge her. Molly's momentum causes her to tumble to the floor and Christina knees her right in the jaw. Molly hits the ground hard but when Christina comes in again Molly grabs her leg and flips her on her back punching her in her face over and over again.

"Please." Christina whispers and holds up her hands in defeat. "I'm done. Please."

My eyes dart to Eric as he approaches her with an unreadable expression on his face. Oh no. I think. This can't be good.

"You done?" Eric asks in an eerily concerned tone.

"Yes." Christina exhales.

"Ok." He says and holds out his hand. "Here, let me help you."

Oh no. Christina takes his hand and he lifts her off the floor.

"Take a break!" He addresses everyone and guides Christina out of the training room.

I give Tris a panicked look and follow closely behind them. Eric slows down as they get to the chasm, and before I know it he lifts Christina up and is dangling her over the edge.

"Grab the edge." He growls. "Or don't." He shrugs.

Christina grabs the edge of the chasm with both hands tightly, both arms shaking uncontrollably.

"What are you doing?!" I yell as I run up beside him.

"If she hangs there for five minutes I will forget here cowardice."

"And what if she doesn't? What if she can't hold on?"

Eric shrugs. "Then she falls".

Anger radiates through my body.

"This is insane! You can't do this!" I growl, and reach down to pull Christina up.

Before I have time to react, Eric kicks me in the side, and I fall forward into the chasm. I reach out in a panic and grab the edge, and struggle to hold on. My whole body is trembling so badly with fear, and anger, that I can't say a word. So I just dangle beside Christina with my eyes closed and hope I don't lose my grip.

"Get her up." Eric says pointing to Christina.

Tris and Will rush over and drag her up over the edge. Will grabs her, steadying her to her feet before leading her to safety down the hallway. Tris stands still, panic in her eyes as she stares at me. Suddenly Eric grabs me by the shirt and heaves me over the edge. Tris goes to grab me but Eric shoves her back.

"Go! All of you!" He snaps, and all of the initiates scramble away, all except Tris, who's eyes are filled with determination once more.

"I said go!" Eric barks.

I give Tris a reassuring nod, so she doesn't get herself into trouble. She lingers a bit more but nods back and disappears down the hallway.

I lie on the ground sputtering for air and trying to slow my breathing. When I finally gather myself, I shakily get up to see Eric standing over me, arms crossed, and that look on his face that he gets when I've pushed him too far.

"You-you almost killed me." I exhale.

"I wouldn't have let you fall." He says quietly.

"You're the one that pushed me!" I growl.

"And you disobeyed me, again! How hard is it for you to follow orders? I'm trying to teach you valuable lessons that you'll appreciate later if you truly want to become Dauntless!"

"Lessons?! You're trying to teach me lessons by kicking me into the chasm?"

Eric let out a throaty growl and leapt towards me, shoving me up against the wall.

"Why can't you just learn to respect me?" he hisses through clenched teeth.

"I'd respect you, if you were worth respecting." I hiss back.

His face goes dark and he shoves me harder against the wall, his hand wrapped tightly around my throat.

"I think I became worth respecting when I became a Dauntless leader!"

"You don't just get everyone's respect just because you become a leader, you have to earn it, just like everyone else, more so even. And pushing me off the chasm or pinning me against this wall isn't going to earn anything, except more back talk." I spat.

To my surprise Eric's face softens and he lets out a chuckle. I look at him confused as he just stands there, staring at me. A few moments pass before he lets go of my throat and brushes his fingers over the gauges I had gotten early in my ears.

"New?" he asks nonchalantly, but I don't answer. I'm too stunned to do anything. He was freaking me out too badly.

Suddenly, without any warning his lips come crashing down into mine, his hands entwining in my hair, steadying my head. Before I have time to react he pulls away and smirks at me. My body begins trembling, although I'm not sure whether it was from rage or something else, but I go with rage and punch him in the chest.

The force knocks him back a little bit and he lets out a laugh, so I hit him again, and again, until finally he grabs my wrists and shoves me forcefully into the wall again, the weight of his body pinning me down, and he crushes his lips to mine once more. His lips were rough and feverish and made my heart do a million flips in my chest. I couldn't tell if it was because of him or because this was the first time I had been kissed by anyone before.

I pull my head back and stare at him anxiously, not knowing what to do. Suddenly my body has a mind of its own and I grab him by his shirt and pull him into me once more. I'm not sure what I'm doing, or even that I like what I'm doing, but my body becomes more and more uncontrollable with every touch.

His body tenses for a moment, but only for a moment, before he deepens the kiss, his lips warm and demanding against mine. He nips my bottom lip and I let out a groan, before he finally pulls away. He stands there, staring at me expressionless for a moment before he takes a step back from me.

"Go." He says void of any emotion, and for once I listen without any retort, one, because I have no idea what else to do, and two, because I couldn't find any words to say even if I tried.


	5. Chapter 5

That night I tossed and turned as a million thoughts whirled in my head. What had happened today? It didn't quite seem real, and how could it? I had been kicked off the chasm and then kissed by the same person. My fingers gently grazed over my still swollen lips, causing my heart to do a weird thump that I would have assumed was me dying if it hadn't already done it earlier.

My face burned red with the thought. Stop it! I tell myself sternly. You cannot, WILL not, allow yourself to feel absolutely _anything_ for him except hatred. That monster of a man, who allowed you to be beaten to a pulp, found amusement in it even. Who kicked you off of the chasm, tortured you every chance he could get and for what? The satisfaction of successfully being an asshole to everyone in Dauntless?

No. No, there were no feelings involved in that kiss, only shock and uncertainty. Although, I do wonder if his mind is racing just the same? And why he did it in the first place? I could ask myself a million of these questions but the truth is just the same. He doesn't care enough about anything but power and respect, let alone some kiss that was just undoubtedly another cruel, sadistic scheme, to make me obey his every whim, just as the others do. And tomorrow? Tomorrow would be no different than the rest.

As soon as sleep overtakes me, I am jolted awake by the cringing sound of metal hitting metal. I squint open an eye to see what the commotion is about and see a dozen flashlights piercing the darkness of the room. I make out a tall, broad silhouette who I recognize as Four, the rest are other Dauntless who I've seen maybe once or twice before.

"Everybody up!" Four says in an almost amused tone.

I grumble and sit up slightly, just enough to seem like I'm following orders.

"It's one in the morning!" Peter protests as he fumbles out of his bed.

"Glad you can tell time." Four says with a sarcastic smirk.

I think I see his eyes flutter in Tris' direction but they are back scanning the room in an instant, and I put it off as my imagination, that and the fact I still only have one eye open.

"Be ready in five and meet me at the tracks. We're going on a little field trip."

I let out an irritated growl and begrudgingly roll out of bed. I'm still wearing my clothes from the day before and honestly don't feel like changing, nor do I really care. So I throw my hair up into a messy, red heap, and groggily wait for Christina and Tris to follow suite. When they are fully clothed and ready, we head up the narrow paths of the pit towards the train.

When we arrive at the tracks Eric and Four are standing beside two large boxes.

"Everyone, grab a gun and a box of ammunition." Four says pointing to the boxes.

I grab one of the guns out of the box and inspect it. It is long and slender and light weight in my hands, not at all like the guns we used in training. I sling its strap over my shoulder, and shove a box of ammunition into one of my pockets.

"Do you think these hurt?" Asks Christina inspecting a box of ammunition that reads, "Paintballs."

"Well," Begins Will. "Given the velocity in which the gun will be propelling it, I believe it will hurt, but taking account its spherical shape and low density, it most likely will only sting, just for a few minutes."

"Thank you, Professor Will." Christina says, rolling her eyes.

"Enough chit-chat." Eric growls, not once looking in my direction.

"The time?" He says to Four.

"Any minute now. How long is it going to take you to memorize the train schedule?"

"Why should I, when I have you to remember it for me?" He says, purposefully knocking into Four's shoulder as he walks past him.

"Is it just me or is Eric grumpier than usual?" Asks Tris who comes to stand beside me. She was right, he was grumpier than usual, and I knew why. But I couldn't really tell her that. Instead, I shrug my shoulders and say,

"Guess he doesn't like to be woken up in the middle of the night either. You know, miss out on any of his beauty sleep."

Tris lets out a giggle and I see Eric's jaw tighten slightly. Oh god, he must have heard me. But to my surprise he doesn't do anything, he just stands there in front of the tracks, without making a sound. Anger bubbles in my stomach. How dare he ignore me like I've done something wrong when I've done nothing. _He's_ the one who kicked me off the chasm, and _he's_ the one who _KISSED _me!

I clinch my jaw and contemplate walking over there and slapping him in his face, but the tracks suddenly begin to vibrate, and a sliver of light shines in the distance.

"Get ready." Says Four. "The train is coming."

Four is the first to get on and Tris isn't far behind him. Maybe I wasn't seeing things earlier? I take note and remind myself to ask her about it later.

"We'll be dividing into two teams to play capture the flag." Four finally says after everyone is on.

"Each team will have an even mix of members, Dauntless-born initiates, and transfers. One team will get off first and find a place to hide their flag. Then the second team will get off and do the same. This is a Dauntless tradition, so I suggest you take it seriously."

"Four and I will be your team captains," Eric says nodding at Four. "Let's divide up transfers first, shall we?"

"You can go first." Four says nonchalantly.

Eric looks around the cart quickly and shrugs,

"Edward."

Next is Four's turn, who looks at his feet, his brow furrowed as if really thinking about his next move.

"I'll take the Stiff." He finally says in an almost bored tone, and somehow I know he's not talking about me, so does Tris, who goes to stand by Four almost immediately.

I know something has to be going on between the two, that's obvious now. I definitely need to remember to ask her about it later. It's Eric's turn again who scans the cart, his eyes purposely skipping over me every time. Finally, after a long pause he lets out an almost frustrated sigh and says with a clenched jaw,

"Ava."

I won't lie, I was a little surprised given the whole cold shoulder he was giving me, and even more surprised that he actually used my name. That made twice already, which I was not keeping track of by the way. But despite my surprise, his face stayed cold and expressionless, and still not once looking my way.

To my dismay I'm stuck on a team of people who hate me, with the exception of Al and Edward, and a few of the dauntless born, I had the great pleasure of trying to work with Eric, Molly, Peter, and Drew. Although, to be honest I would rather work with a million Peter, Molly, and Drew's than have to deal with Eric.

"Hey babe, the whole messy look suites you." Peter says walking by me with a wink as the rest of the team jump off the train.

I take it back, maybe I _would_ rather deal with Eric. I roll my eyes and catch up to him at the front of the group.

"Where are we going, and what's our strategy?" I ask as nonchalantly as possible.

Eric lets out an irritated sigh and points to a large open space at the end of a pier surrounded by trees.

"Over there. It's open enough to be able to see who's coming and the trees provide enough cover, making it hard to see from a distance."

I nod in agreement. "And our strategy?" I ask.

"That, is for you all to decided." He hisses in annoyance.

Eric stops in front of a large tree just at the edge of the pier, and tosses the flag into the top of it. It catches on a branch for a few seconds, only to tumble to the ground when the branch snaps. I sigh and grab the flag, tucking it in my back pocket while I try to find some footing on the tree.

"What are you doing?" Molly hisses as the other initiates gather around.

"I don't know genius, what does it look like I'm doing?" I growl back.

We didn't have time for her or anyone else's stupidity. Molly let out a snort that closely resembled the sound I've read wild boar make when threatened.

"Hurry," Eric grumbles. "We don't have all day."

I huff at his words. No, never would I get a "_good job Ava, nice thinking."_ No instead I get a, "_This was my plan all along, not throwing it up in the tree and hoping it stayed."_ I shake the distractions out of my head and carefully climb up the tree trunk. The bark was slick, most likely from the dew that had been collecting everywhere, but I was able to maintain my footing all the way to the top, and gently hung the flag tightly on a sturdy branch.

"Everything good up there?" I hear Al call out.

"Yeah, coming back down now." I call back.

Suddenly something catches my eye in the distance. It started out as a slight pulse but as I looked harder I could make out the glowing outline of the other teams flag fixated in the middle of an old carousal.

"You guys!" I say, excitement bubbling in my stomach, as I shimmy down the tree as fast as I can, but the bark is slick and halfway down I lose my footing and begin plummeting to the ground below. I close my eyes waiting for the impact but instead, to my surprise, someone catches me just in time.

I look up to see, of course, Eric, staring unamusingly back at me.

"I'm fine. You can put me down now." I say more harshly than I intended.

Almost immediately Eric lets go of me, sending me straight into the ground with a very painful thump. What. An. Asshole. Al and Edward hurry to my side as I begrudgingly rub my backside.

"Are you ok?" Edward asks laying a gentle hand on my shoulder, and furrowing his brow at Eric, who luckily for Edward, wasn't looking in his direction.

"Yeah." I say, grabbing Al's outstretched hand and steadying myself back on my feet.

"The other team's flag," I say, dusting off my pants. "I saw it. It's on an old carousal just north of here."

"Navy Pier, same place as last year. How creative." Eric says disdain in his voice.

"What's the plan then?" Al asks expectantly. At first I think he is speaking to Eric but then I realize everyone's eyes are on me. I want to tell them they have it all wrong, that I have no idea, but a thought crosses my mind.

"We break up into four teams. One stays here for defense, one goes up the middle, distracting them, while the other two come up the sides. That's the only way we are going to get close enough to do anything."

To my surprise Eric nods in agreement.

"I'll go up the middle with two of the dauntless born." He says, a hint of excitement in his voice as if he believes the plan could really work.

"Molly and Drew go to the left, Al and Edward to the right."

"What about me?" Peter scoffs. "You and Ava will stay here and defend."

"What?!" I say in disbelief. "You want me to stay here with Peter?"

"That's what I said."

"Why? This was my plan! I should be going with the rest of you!"

"No I should!" growls Peter.

"Enough!" hisses Eric. "I said BOTH of you will be defending and I mean it. Now shut up and do your job." He barks, motioning for the rest of the group to move out. Edward gives my shoulder a reassuring squeeze as he walks by me and disappears into the darkness, leaving me alone with Peter. I let out a sigh and rest my back against the tree.

"Well I guess it's just me and you now." Peter grins. "You and me, me and you, alone at last."

I gag as bile rises in my throat. "In your dreams." I hiss.

Peter lets out an eerie laugh as he steps closer to me, his face inches from mine, leaving me no room to escape.

"I think we could make that dream a reality." He says mockingly, as his hand snakes up my side.

"Get away from me." I say through clinched teeth.

"Aw but we could be having so much fun. And the others, well they'll be gone for a while."

Peter's hand finds its way up my shirt and I've had enough. I knee him in the crotch with as much force as I can, causing him to double over in pain. Suddenly rage consumes me and instead of running like I intended to I grab him by his collar and punch him right in the face.

Blood spurts from his nose and he cries out in pain. I let out a satisfied huff and turn on my heels to catch up to the others.

"You bitch." He growls and grabs me by the collar of my shirt, ripping it down the middle, and sending me backwards into the dirt.

I groan in pain and feel the pressure of his body on top of mine. I struggle to get him off of me but he is much stronger than I am. He grabs a fist full of my hair and yanks hard, making my eyes water, and punches me in the face. My head snaps back into the ground and pain shoots through my skull. Suddenly I hear footsteps.

"Hey get off her!" It's Christina.

I hear Peter hiss in pain as he gets pummeled with paint and I give him a good shove as I scramble to my feet. I look up to see Tris coming down from the tree with our flag and I know the game is over.

"You okay?" Tris asks franticly, examining my bloody nose and torn clothing.

"Yeah," I say whipping the blood from my face. "I'm fine."

"What a loser." Christina growls, kicking Peter in the side as he lies on the ground clutching his paint splattered stomach. The shouts of triumph echo around me as the rest of Four's team rumbles in. I subconsciously scan the crowd for Eric, and catch his cold eyes staring daggers in me. It would be no surprise if he blamed our loss on me, in fact I'm almost certain he does.

I clench my arms around my torso tightly, protecting my exposed abdomen from the cool breeze and feel a hand on my shoulder. I flinch, only to see Edward beside me.

"Are you okay?" He asks, his eyes filled with concern.

"Yeah, I will be whenever we get back."

"What happened?"

"Peter happened."

Saying his name leaves a fowl taste in my mouth and I scrunch my nose. Edward's eyes cloud with a darkness that I had never seen in them before. Is Edward being protective over me? Does Edward like me? No. I think to myself shaking my head, he is just being a friend. We had bonded over our unwillful fight and that was it.

"I'm okay Edward." I say softly, patting him on the shoulder. Edward shakes the expression off his face and smiles.

"Well here." He says handing me his jacket. "You probably need this more than I do."

I nod in gratitude and drape it over my shoulders. It was still warm from being worn, and I nestle into it some more, trying to escape from the cold air.

When we arrive back at Dauntless it is already time for breakfast. I look around for Tris and the others. Tris is surrounded by the dauntless-born, laughing and joking around. She looks like she is actually having a little fun for once in her life, so I decide not to bother her. I'm glad she is finally starting to fit in somewhere, I smile slightly to myself.

I think about heading back to the dorms to change but I'm starving, so decide to grab a bite to eat first. Suddenly a strong hand grabs me by the arm and spins me around to face them. Eric.

"What do you want?" I sigh, trying to pry his fingers off of my arm.

"What was that today?" He growls, digging his fingers deeper into my flesh.

"What are you talking about?!"

"You know what I'm talking about. We lost today because of you. You didn't want to defend, you couldn't follow orders, yet again! And we lost! What is up with you?"

My body begins to tremble and my vision blurs red with anger.

"We lost because of me?" I say, raising my voice. "No, we _lost_ because Peter attacked me!"

Eric looks at me in confusion and loosens his grip. I snatch my arm away and take off Edward's jacket, revealing my ripped shirt, and exposed abdomen, as if my bruised and bloodied face hadn't already given it away.

"I didn't know." He says hoarsely.

If I didn't know any better I would say he sounded remorseful, sympathetic even, but I knew better than that.

"No, you didn't know, because you were on too big of a power trip to listen to me. So if you want to blame someone for us loosing, blame yourself."

I don't wait for his reaction, I just turn and leave, not wanting to look at him any longer. Whatever feelings I may have had for him after what happened yesterday were gone. He didn't care about me or anything else. All he cared about was power, and nothing else. I head towards the dorms. I've lost my appetite.

I inspect the dorm to make sure I'm alone before grabbing some new clothes from my bag. After today I feel filthy and sore, so I decide to take a shower while no one else is around. I walk into the large open bathroom and look around one last time before taking off my tattered clothing.

I turn on the shower and let the water run for a moment before stepping into its steady stream. The warm water massages my face and soothes the sore bruises beginning to line my nose and jaw. I let the relaxing hum of the water lull me into a trance.

I'm suddenly brought back when I hear a faint sound coming from the dorms and snap my head around to see if anyone had come in. I stand without moving a muscle, my eyes darting back and forth around the empty room. The panic finally fades from my chest and I put it off as my imagination and begin showering once more.

Without any warning, something heavy comes hurtling into me sending me crashing into the hard, tiled wall in front of me. My head cracks into it and I lose my footing on the slick, wet tile. On my way down I reach out for something, anything, to steady myself before I hit the rigid floor, but I only manage to wrap my fingers around the knob of the shower, turning the hot water into a scalding blast.

I let out an agonizing cry as the steaming water hits me in the face, and I fall onto the hard floor. I manage to roll onto my side, out of the way of the shower, only to be dragged into the middle of the room by my leg. I try to kick my leg free from whoever it was but instead I get a sickening kick to the rib cage and double over as the pain shoots through my abdomen.

A pair of hands wrap around my wrists and pin them to the ground. My eyes finally quite burning long enough to catch a glimpse at my attacker or rather, attackers, and it's no surprise that I see Peter and Drew in front of me.

"Get away from me." I say, my voice quivering.

"Oh no, I think we have some unfinished business now don't we?" Peter grins sadistically.

"No, I don't think you do!" Comes a familiar growl. Eric. I let out a relieved sigh as my wrists are released, and I wrap my arms around my knees, trying to cover myself as best I can. I hear a thump, a kick, a groan, and I know Eric is giving them what they deserve.

My eyes burn as I fight back tears. I felt so weak, so exposed. Suddenly something warm wraps around me and I jerk away instinctively.

"It's okay, you're okay." Eric says in the softest tone I'm sure he's ever used. I let my body relax and cling to the soft fabric Eric placed around me.

"I'm going to pick you up, okay?" Eric says. I nod in agreement and he gently lifts me off the ground holding me tightly into his chest. My body is trembling uncontrollably and my head is pounding as the adrenaline begins to wear off.

"It's okay, I've got you. You're safe now." I somehow find comfort in his words and relax my body as I press my face into his chest. Maybe I was wrong about him after all. Maybe he isn't as bad as he leads on.

I open my eyes to a blurred sea of red and the faint sound of running water. My head, face, and ribs throb and I know I shouldn't move. When my vision clears I begin to make out the outlines of the mahogany walls and objects around me, and I know I'm in someone's room.

I look down at the strange, yet extraordinarily comfortable bed. Where was I? Suddenly the water shuts off and the door opens, revealing a very half naked Eric.

"You're up." He smiles drying the remaining droplets of water off of his toned chest. I feel my face turn a deep red and try to look anywhere but his direction.

"What happened?" I say in a shaky tone, trying to make some sort of conversation to ease my embarrassment. Eric's body grew still.

"Peter and Drew," He growled, the softness no longer evident in his voice. "They attacked you in the showers."

The realization hits me and I pull the blankets over my bare shoulders. Eric looks away and walks to a closet, shifts through some clothes, and pulls out a black t-shirt.

"I left you how you were because I thought me dressing you would make you uncomfortable." He says, pulling the shirt over his head. "I brought some of your clothes."

He points to a pile of neatly folded clothes at the end of the bed.

"Thank you." I say hoarsely. Eric stares at me for a moment, an unreadable expression on his face, as if he was contemplating something but decides against it, and gives a nod instead.

"I'll be outside if you need me. I let Four know so you can stay here as long as you like until you feel better."

I nod in confirmation and he walks out of the room, shutting the door behind him. I shuffle to the pile of clothes and sift through them, two shirts, a pair of paints, a bra and a pair of underwear. I smile in amusement at the thought of how uncomfortable Eric must have been picking these out, and quickly throw them on.

When I'm done I find Eric in the living room lying on the couch with his eyes closed. I stop and take in the way he looks, so peaceful, so unlike himself, before I gently tap him on the shoulder. His eyes slowly open and for some reason I can't pull away from his gaze.

"They didn't get away with it you know." He finally says in almost a whisper. My mind races at the thought of what Eric could have done to them, but I know no matter what it was, Eric made them pay, and that's all that matters to me.

"I know." I say.

Eric finally breaks our gaze as he sits up and pats the couch, instructing for me to sit down. For once I listen, and take a seat beside him. There's a long, awkward silence between us, and I fidget my hands nervously. Eric reaches over and lays his hand gently over mine, the sudden contact causing my heart to thump erratically in my chest.

"You don't have to be nervous." He says, before awkwardly removing his hand.

His words only made me more nervous, I had no clue what to think of all this, it wasn't a few hours ago that he was threatening me, and now all of a sudden he was being gentle and taking care of me. I usually take pride in being able to read someone as soon as I meet them, but Eric, he was a different story, he was erratic and unpredictable, and that scared me.

"Shouldn't I be?" I finally ask.

Eric lets out a laugh, not at all menacing or sarcastic, but an actual, genuine laugh.

"What? You think I would save you just to get you alone and kill you myself?"

I stare blankly at him for a moment. Was he trying to joke with me?

"Sorry for being cautious, but you're a ridiculously confusing man." I state plainly.

"Confusing?" He asks, raising his brows in mock astonishment.

Suddenly a thought crosses my mind and I don't know why I say it but for some reason I do.

"Why did you kiss me?" I say. "The other day, at the chasm."

Eric's body stiffens beside me, all amusement drained from his face. I can tell there is a war going on inside his brain as he chews on his bottom lip intensely. Finally he lets out a sigh.

"It was either that or punch you, because honestly that's how I feel around you most of the time."

His earnesty catches me off guard and I look at him in surprise.

"You feel that way?"

"Yes." He sighs. "It seems like every time I give you an order, you purposely do the exact opposite, and for some unsound reason I don't know whether to punch you or kiss you, because on one hand everyone else is too afraid to be as honest as you are to me, and on the other hand, I'm a dauntless leader and you should be more respectful of my authority, which, you're not."

I stare at the ground intensely as I let his words sink in.

"And what about you." He says. "You could have broken away, ran, but instead you kissed me back. Why?"

I look up at him, his usual cold expressionless face, was now full of an intensity I hadn't quite seen before. He was showing me a part of himself I had never seen him show. Was this the real Eric, or just the vulnerable one?

"I don't know honestly. I mean you had just dangled me and my friend off the chasm so before that moment all I wanted to do was light you on fire, but when you kissed me, it just, I don't know, made me forget why I hated you in the first place."

"I'm not as sadistic as you think you know. I may have some strange methods, but everything I did to you was to make you stronger."

I scoff at his statement. "Yeah well, we can just agree to disagree on that one."

Eric lets out a sigh. "There are things happening here in Dauntless Ava, things beyond both our knowledge. Everything I've done was to prepare you for what's to come. You're a true Dauntless, I've known that since that first day on the roof top. You belong here Ava, and I'm just trying to make sure of that."

"What things are happening?" I ask curiously.

"Nothing that I could ever tell you." He sighs.

"So, all those things you've said and done, they weren't because you hated me?" I say, and I get the sudden urge to touch him, so I scoot close enough that our bodies are brushing against one another, causing Eric to stiffen at the sudden contact.

"No, I don't hate you, it's the exact opposite actually. But, but I'm not a good guy Ava, and I never will be, I'm not a hero, and I'll never save the day. I'll always be on the opposite side. Just know that." Eric looks down at me, a faint glimpse of sorrow in his eyes, as if the thought saddens him.

"You were my hero, yesterday, with Peter and Drew, you saved me then." I say in a hushed voice.

"That's different." He huffs.

"How?" I ask. "How was that different?"

"Because," He says, frustration growing in his voice. "It was you. It's different with you."

Eric reaches out and gently cups my face in his hand. His touch causes my insides to burn with a sensation I had never felt before. A part of me knew this was wrong, toxic even, after all, he just said himself that he wasn't a good guy, but I guess the Dauntless in me just doesn't care.

"Well then, maybe I don't want a hero." I say firmly.

"I'm serious." He says in a low voice.

"Some am I."

And as if that is all Eric needed to hear, he wraps his arms tightly around me and pulls me forcefully into him. His lips collide with mine, the longing and hunger, evident in every touch. I wrap my arms around his neck and run my fingers through his short hair, causing him to let out a throaty growl. His kisses become more desperate, as if they would never be enough, and he gently lays me back onto the couch. I'm sure this moment is a fine line between a dream and reality, but honestly, I really don't care.


	6. Chapter 6

I woke up in Eric's bed with him nowhere to be found. My face flushed as the memories of the night before played in my head. Eric, the one person I hated more than anything, the man who tortured me, yelled at me, hurt me. He had admitted his feelings to me. Showed me a side of himself I had never imagined was there.

I had kissed him, wanted to this time, more than anything. We lay on his couch for most of the night, neither one of us saying a word, just silently giving the other what we needed most, comfort. Never had I thought Eric, of all people, needed anything of the sort, but the look in his eyes as he called himself a villain, made me think otherwise.

It was then that I finally saw Eric as what he truly was, lost. Lost in a world of betrayal and death, where being different got you killed and speaking your mind got you just the same. So he conformed, became something he hated looking at in the mirror each morning, but it was something he had to be to survive, and somewhere down the line, those lines of who he was inside and who he had to be on the outside became blurred, and he lost himself to the darkness of this world, this faction.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps.

"Ava?" Eric said, gently opening the bedroom door. "You awake?"

I roll onto my back, my body still too sore to move much(who am I kidding, I'm just lazy), and gave him a tired smile. Eric emerged from behind the door with a grim look on his face. "Everything ok?" I ask, sitting up finally.

He doesn't say a word, he just stands there, his eyes fixated on his shoes and his fists shoved into his pockets.

"Eric?" I say, my tone more frustrated than I had wanted it to be. He looks at me then, his green eyes full of that familiar intensity.

"Edward," he says, scratching the back of his neck. "He was attacked last night."

My body goes numb, and my stomach turns to knots.

"What do you mean he was attacked? What happened? Is he okay? Who attacked him?"

The panic rushes through my body like a raging storm and suddenly the air around me becomes very thin.

"Answer me!" I yell.

Eric clenches his jaw, most likely resisting the urge to bite my head off for yelling at him, but instead he says flatly,

"He was stabbed in the eye and he's in the infirmary."

I jump up from the bed and scramble for the clothes Eric had brought the day before.

"Who?" I say through gritted teeth as I yank the clothes on as fast as I can, not caring about Eric's eyes lingering over my bare skin. "Who in the world would do something like that?"

His body stiffens and he brings his gaze down to his feet once again.

"Tris suspects Peter." The blood drains from my face and I feel as if I'm going to faint.

"What?" I say in almost a whisper. "How. You, you said you took care of him, that he got what he deserved."

"I did!" He snapped.

"Obviously not, because he's still attacking people!"

Eric sits down on the bed, his gaze still firmly planted at his feet, and lets out a long sigh.

"I did what I could Ava, there's only so much I can do."

I know what he's saying is true. I don't know what I expected him to do in the first place… That's untrue. I know _exactly _what I wanted him to do. I wanted them dead, gone, tortured, thrown off the chasm or tied to the rails, seeing their miserable lives flash before them as their death comes hurtling towards them. I knew Eric did all he could do, but it wasn't enough, the thought of Peter's sadistic smile is forever planted in my head and I can't be here another minute longer.

"Where are you going?" Eric says, jumping up from the bed as I swing the bedroom door open, determination evident in every step.

"I'm going to make sure my friend is still alive." I hiss, and slam the door behind me.

When I enter the infirmary I see Tris standing over a sleeping Edward. I stop before I get there, taking in the sight of him. He looks so defeated, so helpless laying there, his blonde hair stained red with blood. Tris senses my presents and glances at me, and although her tear stained face is rough, and hard as stone, she manages to force a smile my way.

"Ava?" Edward says, his voice coarse and tired.

"Yeah it's me." I say as cheerfully as possible willing my body to move forward.

"I'm glad you're here." He smiles, and I gently place my hand over his. "Are you okay?" He asks, furrowing his brow, causing the bandage over his eye to move slightly.

"What do you mean?" I ask a bit confused. He was the one in the infirmary after all.

"Four told us you were attacked a few days ago, and none of us have seen you since, we've been worried about you."

What? Is he really asking how I'm doing when he's the one who just got stabbed in the eye? And then I realized something. Edward cared about me. He stood up to Eric for me, knowing the consequences that would hold. He was always there for me when I needed someone, he made me feel safe, and even though he did like me, never had he crossed any sort of line. No, he wouldn't do anything like that because Edward was a good guy. He was nothing like Peter, nothing like Eric. Edward was a hero.

"I'm fine." I say, forcing a smile. "You should be worrying about how kickass you're going to look with an eyepatch."

This makes Edward laugh at the thought. "Yeah, I suppose I will look pretty kickass."

I laugh light heartedly and Tris chimes in as well.

"You really do know how to turn a situation don't you Ava." She smiles.

"It's a 50/50 shot that the situation either gets better or worse." Edward grins.

"Hey!" I say and slap him playfully in the arm.

Someone clears their throat behind us and I turn around to see Eric and Four, both of their faces void of any emotion, and I know whatever news they bring can't be good.

"We need to talk to Edward alone." Eric says flatly.

"No, it's okay, I want them here." He says grabbing my hand so I won't move. Eric clenches his jaw as an unreadable expression flashes on his face ever so briefly. I look over at Four to see he's in a staring match with Tris, a sadness in his eyes that I know means this can't be good.

"Tell them Eric." He says dryly.

"You're out of Dauntless Edward." He says with a sigh, as if the news doesn't faze him.

"What?!" Tris and I say simultaneously.

"I didn't stutter did I?" Eric huffs.

"How-how could you do this? He gets attacked by some assholes, the same assholes, may I add, that attacked me, and they walk away with nothing but a slap on the wrist, while Edward.."

A knot forms in my throat and I can't finish my sentence.

"There isn't any proof they were the ones who did it." Eric says.

I can tell he knows the truth, that the words he says are not his own, but in that moment I still resent him.

"I know they did it!" Growls Tris through clenched teeth.

"How?" Eric snaps. "How do you know? Did you see them do it?"

Tris glances at Four, a pleading look on her face, but he only drops his gaze to the floor.

"No." Tris says, an anger in her tone I had never heard before.

"Who else would be going around attacking people?" I hiss.

Eric ignores my question and directs his attention to Edward.

"You need to have your things packed and meet me in the pit by morning." he says, void of any emotion.

"No." I say, the tears that had been threatening to fall, now run down my cheeks.

Then the thought hit me. I didn't belong in Abnegation, and I don't belong here. I don't belong anywhere.

"I'm going with him." I say, determination in my voice.

"Ava." Tris whispers.

Eric clenches his jaw, and his eyes light with rage.

"You're not going anywhere." He growls.

"I don't think that's your decision to make."

"Like hell it's not, I'm a…"

"Dauntless leader, yada yada yada." I interrupt. "Yeah, we get it. But since Dauntless is all about kicking the ones who were attacked out instead of the ones doing the attacking, then I should probably go too."

"That's not how it works." Eric says, his jaw clenched tight.

"Oh really? Then enlighten me, please, I would just **LOVE **to understand the reasoning behind this."

"That's **ENOUGH** Ava!" Eric yells.

"Eric." Four finally speaks up. "She's right. Let her leave if she wants, you do understand, however, once you leave, there's no coming back."

I nod my head in agreement without hesitation. I will **NOT** let Edward do this alone, not after all he's done for me.

"No." Edward says. "I can't let you do this."

I squeeze his hand reassuringly. "The decision has already been made." I smile.

"No!" He snaps, snatching his hand from mine. "You're not going anywhere Ava!"

His tone causes me to wince. I had never heard Edward raise his voice before, never thought him capable of such.

"Just-just please stay here." He says, the familiar gentleness back in his voice, and then turns his attention to Eric. "I'll have my things ready in time."

Rage tears through my body and the walls begin to cave in around me. I had to get out of there. Without another word, I shove past Eric and slam the door behind me. When I'm halfway down the hallway I here Eric call out for me, I know I should probably keep walking but I will by body to stop.

"Ava." He says, finally catching up to me.

"I'm really not in the mood for this." I sigh, my back still turned to him.

"What was that back there?" He says, grabbing my shoulders and spinning me around to face him.

I stare at the floor because I don't want to see the hurt that is evident in his eyes.

"Look at me." He says, his tone soft and gentle like the night before, and grabs my chin, forcing me to look into his eyes.

"What do you want from me?" I say hoarsely.

"I want the truth." He answers.

"Why? Why would you want to leave your faction, your home? To prove a point?"

"I have no point to prove." I mumble.

"Then why?"

"Because Edward shouldn't have to do this alone!" I yell, tears stinging my eyes once again and I move my face from his gaze.

"Why do you even care?" Eric yanks my face to meet his gaze once again. "Did last night mean nothing to you?" He growls.

"No," I say, yanking away from his grip. "Last night meant nothing to you. And to answer your question, Edward is my friend, and unlike some people, I'll do _whatever_ it takes to protect the people I care about. Now if you don't mind, I have a lot of training to catch up on."

Eric goes to say something, but I don't listen. Instead, I turn on my heels and head down the hallway, a new agenda on my mind. If Eric and the other leaders wouldn't take care of Peter and Drew, then I would.


	7. Chapter 7

"Ava!" Christina cried as she launched herself forward, nearly knocking me off of my feet as I entered the dorms.

I grabbed her shoulders and gently pulled her away from me.

"What happened to you? We've all been worried sick!"

I scan the room absentmindedly, my eyes fall to the showers and a twinge of panic fills my chest as the memory of Peter's rough hands trailing over my bare skin comes flooding back.

"That's not important." I say void of emotion.

Christina looks at me questionably. "Ava?" She says, concern in her voice, then looks around the room before whispering, "Four told us you were attacked, then you go missing, and then right after we're all ranked, Edward is attacked too, what's going on?"

"They've already posted rankings?" I ask, ignoring her question.

"I know you're avoiding the question Ava, but yes, they've posted the rankings, not the official ones, those will be posted later today, but just to give us an idea of where we're at."

I bit my lip nervously. I had forgotten all about the severity of initiation, and if I didn't give a crap about whether I stayed or went at the moment, I would be pretty scared. I lost my first fight, I lost capture the flag, and I've been MIA for three days, the odds weren't really in my favor at the moment. And then it hit me.

"Christina, what was Peter's ranking?" I ask.

"Peter's? Who cares, don't you want-"

"Christina!"

"Right, um fourth? I believe."

"And who were the other three?"

"Edward, you, and Tris." A weight sank in my stomach as the realization became clearer.

"When were they posted?" I ask as the knot forming in my stomach grew larger with every breath.

"The morning we came back from capture the flag, at breakfast."

That son of a bitch. He was trying to move up the ranks, first by getting me out of the way, then by getting rid of Edward. I won't even begin to contemplate how I even came in second in the first place, but if my hunch is right, the only person left is-

"Tris." I exhale with a shaky breath.

"Tris? Wha- Ava what is the matter?" Christina says, concern in her dark eyes.

"Where is everyone right now?"

"In the training room waiting for Four, I had just come back to.."

But I don't let her finish, I'm already in full stride towards the training room, and if Peter has laid one filthy hand on Tris, what's about to come to him will be far worse than even he could imagine.

"Ava, Christina, just in time." Four says as I burst through the training room doors. I hadn't even noticed how close behind me Christina was until I felt her brush past me.

"As I was saying to the other's.."

My mind trails off as I scan the room. I exhale a sigh of relief when I see Tris standing beside Will and Al towards the front. I also take note of Eric's absence which, to my disdain, leaves an overwhelming sadness in my chest. My eyes dart around the room and I see Peter and Drew standing off to the side, Peter's eyes fixated on Tris. I tighten my fist at the thought of him laying a hand on her.

"Now this will be your last fight before we post final rankings this afternoon, so make it count." Four's voice echoes throughout the room.

"First fight of the day will be Ava," Four gives me a reassuring nod before saying, "against Peter."

I hear Christina gasp beside me. "What the hell kind of sick joke is this." She says in disgust. "You just get attacked by him and now he wants you to fight him!"

"Christina," I say, gently touching her shoulder in reassurance because I know exactly what Four was doing, he was giving me my revenge.

"I'll be fine." I smile, before stepping into the ring. Peter steps in opposite of me with that sarcastic smirk he always wears.

"Just can't get enough of me huh Stiff?" He grins wider. To his surprise I grin back at him, which confuses him and his smirk turns to a puzzled frown.

"Ok you know the rules" Four sighs, "now let's get this over with."

As soon as the last words left Four's mouth Peter was already at me, kicking me in the stomach and sending me tumbling to the ground. Rage tears through my body as he goes to straddle me, and I twist out of his way just in time and elbow him in the side, causing him to let out a painful grunt. I see the fury fill his eyes as he throws a punch with everything he has into my jaw.

I stagger backwards as the pain surges through my face like electricity. Peter takes this opportunity to land another punch in my ribs and swipes my legs from underneath me, sending me face first into the ground. The metallic taste of blood fills my mouth and I feel my lip beginning to swell. Before I have time to get up, Peter is on my back, a fist full of my hair in his hands, and yanks my head backward towards him.

"Had enough yet Stiff?" He hisses in my ear before slamming my head back into the ground.

My vision blurs for a moment but I can't I WON"T, let him beat me. Peter goes to grab my head again but this time I'm ready and I throw my head backwards as hard as I can right into his face. The sound of his nose cracking vibrates through the back of my skull and I twist around with all the force I can muster up and land another hit into his face. Peter yells out as blood spurts from his nose and mouth and stumbles backwards.

I give him a firm shove and he tumbles to the ground, the images of his sadistic smirk while he pins my bare body to the ground dance in my head, and my body begins to tremble. My vision turns red with rage and I climb on top of him hitting him once more in the face, his head snaps back into the ground with a sickly crack and I know he can't go one, that I've won but I can feel his hands all over me and I can't will my body to stop, so I hit him again, and again, each time more forceful than the last until a firm grip on my shoulder pulls me from my trance.

"Ava" Four says gently. "That's enough, he's done."

I stare at him a moment as my chest heaves for breath, before running as fast as I can out of the room, Tris calls for me but I hear Four tell her to let me go and for that I'm thankful.

I'm not exactly sure where I'm going, I just keep walking trying to wrap my head around what I'd just done. A part of me felt guilty but I knew I shouldn't be, Peter deserved everything he got. What scared me the most was my inability to stop, it was like I was watching what was happening in horror through someone else's eyes, and even though it felt good to know he wouldn't hurt anyone anymore, the thought of what I'd just done terrified me.

"Ava!" I hear someone call out behind me.

I turn around to see Eric jogging towards me, a look of horror washing over him as he sees my face.

"What happened to you?" He growls.

"Peter." I say flatly, wiping the blood from my face.

Eric looks like he might explode but I put a hand on his arm and try to force a smile.

"It's ok, we fought in the ring, you should be proud because I beat the shit out of him."

Eric's expression softens and gently wipes some of the blood from my lip with his thumb.

"Come on. Let's go get you cleaned up." I give him a nod and follow him down the corridor.

"Sit down," he says as we enter his apartment, his Dauntless leader complex back in full swing.

I smile slightly and follow his orders as he heads into the kitchen. I hear him shifting through his cabinets and the sound of running water before he emerges with a bowl of water and a wet rag. He sits down on the couch next to me and sets the bowl on the small wooden coffee table in front of us before gently grasping my hand in his, and wiping the dried blood from my knuckles.

"You shouldn't have done that." He finally says as he moves the warm rag across my temple and down the side of my face.

"You're right." I say. "The Dauntless leadership should have."

"You know I tried right." He says clinching his jaw. "There's still so much of this faction I just don't get yet."

"I know." I sigh. "Dauntless is supposed to be about bravery yet they look the other way when some asshole uses the most cowardly way to move up through the ranks." Eric looks at me puzzled.

"He did what?"

"You don't find it the least bit curious that he would attack not one but two people just a couple days apart, two people that he felt threatened by."

"Makes since I guess." Eric shrugs. "But you shouldn't worry about your rank." He smirks.

"No, I shouldn't huh, you know since I'm ranked second,"

"First." He corrects.

"SECOND," I continue, not wanting to be reminded of Edward. "after doing absolutely nothing to deserve it."

"What?" He says furrowing his brow. "You think I had something to do with it?"

I raise an eyebrow accusingly at him.

"Whoa hey, I had nothing to do with that, I'm not even the one who does the rankings, that's all Four. Who knows," He smirks, "Maybe he has a thing for you."

"I seriously doubt that." I say with a laugh remembering all of the longing stares between him and Tris.

"Why's that?"

"Uh-just-uh..no reason." I stammer, not wanting to reveal my suspicions. Here I was thinking it was the most obvious thing in the world to see, but I guess it's just me.

"He's just Four." I shrug.

"Well no matter what you think you deserve that spot Ava, you're a true Dauntless." Eric's hand lingers on my cheek, it's warmth soothing my throbbing face.

"Eric." I whisper as he leans closer. "This, this is wrong."

Puzzled by my words he pulls back, staring into my eyes with that intensity that he only shows when we're alone.

"What do you mean?"

I sigh and gently shove him away from me. "This," I say motioning to his apartment. "Us. I mean, I'm an initiate and you're a leader, don't they have rules about that kind of stuff?"

Eric looks at me almost in amusement. "Since when were you all about following the rules?"

"I'm not, I mean, I-I don't know. What would Max say if he found out about us, what would they do?"

"They wouldn't do anything except scold me for being reckless and send me on my way, it's not like it's never happened before."

"I'm sure they'd care if they think you helped bump my ranking." I add.

"But I didn't."

"Yeah well they don't know that, and neither do the other initiates! They'll hate me." I say somberly at my feet, not wanting to look Eric in the eyes.

"Since when do you care about what other's think of you? What's gotten in to you Ava?" He says, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Nothing, I-I just think we should hold off until initiation is over that's all." Eric removes his hand from my shoulder and I immediately miss its warmth. There's a long silence between us before he finally says,

"Fine, you can leave now." I look up at him finally and see his eyes are as dark as the first day I met him.

"Eric." I say hoarsely.

"Get out." He growls.

"Eric please." Is all I manage as the tears sting my eyes.

"Now initiate!" I wince at his words and run out of the room as the tears run down my face.

"Wake up initiates." Four's voice beams through the dormitory.

I sit up in my bed as soon as his words reach me. Sleep didn't come easy last night, Eric's words rang through my head through most of the night. I didn't understand why he had become so harsh, all I said was I didn't think our affection, or whatever this thing was between us, was a good idea at the moment, not until initiation was over. Why was that such a hard concept for him? Didn't he know the consequences for both of us if anyone found out?

The only thing, in fact, that did bring me solace was the fact that Peter had to spend the night in the infirmary, away from me and Tris, and anyone else he felt threatened by. My mind drifted to Edward. He would be leaving today. A part of me wanted to go see him, to wish him good luck, but I knew it would only make it hurt worse, for both of us, and the fact that Eric was the one showing him off, and well, things would most likely be more than awkward.

"Today is the first day of stage two. Remember, it doesn't matter how well you did in stage one, this stage is all mental, so just keep that in mind. Now get ready, and meet me in 10." Great. I thought, as Four left the room, my mental state was already questionable at the moment.

I watched Christina be carried from the simulation room by Will and Al, her whole body trembling so much she couldn't even walk. Yay. I thought.

"Ava." Four called from behind the door. "You're up."

Double yay. Tris who had been sitting quietly beside me gives me a reassuring pat on the shoulder. I give her an overly confident wink, a fake one, may I add because I am anything but confident at the moment, before following behind Four. I stop in my tracks as I see Eric leaned against the back wall of the room.

"What are you doing here-what is he doing here?" I say, more panicked than I expected it to sound. I can tell by Four's stance that he doesn't agree either, but he walks to the computer and types some things in before saying,

"He's sitting in on your landscape."

"Why?" I snap.

"I don't think that's any of your business Stiff." He hisses.

"Let's just get this over with." Four sighs, stepping towards me with the syringe.

I wince as the needle pierces my skin, and sit back into the chair as instructed.

"Remember, just relax, try to get your heartbeat steady, and be brave." Was the last thing I heard before drifting off.

_When I wake I'm back in my old room in Abnegation, the bland, grey walls, feeling as if they were closing in around me. But that's how I felt everyday back there, so it didn't make me worry, not until a knock came at my door. _

_"Come in." I say, almost involuntarily. _

_The door squeaks open slowly, a dark shadow is standing right outside it but it doesn't move, it just stays there, suspended in the air. Panic rises in my chest as I stare at the dark figure._

_"Who is it?" I ask hoarsely._

_I go to get up when another shadow from underneath my bed slivers around my ankle and sends me face first into the ground. The shadow tugs on my leg forcefully, dragging me underneath the bed. _

_"Help! Somebody help me!" I scream as I claw at the ground._

_Finally the shadow from the hallway emerges and it's Peter. _

_"It's okay, I've got you." He says gently as he yanks me from the shadows grasp. _

_Why is Peter here in my room? I say to myself. Why is he so nice? _

_"You okay?" He asks, concern in his big brown eyes. _

_"I-uh..yeah, what-what was that?" I ask, scratching the back of my head._

_"It was me." He says solemnly. "Whaa.."_

_Before I have time to respond the figure emerges from underneath my bed, and to my horror, it's another Peter. This time his face is contorted into a menacing sneer. _

_"We need to get out of here." The other Peter says, grabbing me by my arm, but when I turn to face him, it isn't Peter I'm staring at, but Eric instead._

_"Come on." He says again._

_"Stiff." The other one who has turned into Eric as well, growls from across the room. _

_What is going on? I think. What is happening?_

_"Ava?" Eric says brushing a lose strand of hair from my face. "Come with me." He whispers. _

_"No." I say, as the realization washes over me. _

_"No?" He says, sounding broken. "Why?"_

_"Because," I say planting a kiss on his cheek before whispering gently in his ear, "This isn't real."_

As soon as the words leave my mouth I'm jolted out of the simulation to see a very tense Four staring wide eyed back at me. My face turns red. Oh no, had he seen all of that?

"Erase it." Eric says through a clenched jaw. I look at him confused, was it really that bad?

"What?" Four says, almost as if he can't believe what he's hearing.

"You heard what I said, now erase it!" Eric snaps.

Four hesitates for a moment before typing some things vigorously into his computer.

"It's done." He finally says.

"Don't breathe a word to anyone about this." Eric growls.

"Don't worry," Four says shaking his head. "I would never do that."

"What's going on?" I finally say. "Was it really that bad?"

"Get up." Eric orders panic evident in his eyes as he grabs me by the arm.

"Where are you taking her?" Four says hesitantly.

"The less you know the better." Eric says flatly before dragging me out the back door.

"Do you mind!?" I growl yanking my arm away from him. "What is going on?"

"How long have you known?" He hisses.

"How long have I known what? What is happening Eric? Just tell me!"

"You really don't know?" He says in disbelief.

"Know what?" I growl, frustration overwhelming me.

"You're divergent Ava." He whispers, grabbing me by my shoulders.

"Wha-what?" All the frustration melts from my body, replacing it with sheer terror and uncertainty.

"And now, you have to leave, you can't be here."

"What? No, I'm not going to leave just because of something so stupid." I scoff.

"This isn't a joke Ava," Eric says shaking me slightly. "You're not safe here, if anyone else finds out, they'll kill you, do you understand that? They will make me kill you!"

"I don't understand." I say hoarsely as panic began to cause my body to tremble.

"All that you need to understand right now Ava, is that I will NEVER let that happen, do you hear me? NEVER. You just have to trust me. Do you trust me?"

The panic I had been feeling faded away as he spoke, his eyes pleading for my trust. It was at that moment that I realized that no matter how screwed up it may seem, Eric was the only person here in Dauntless that I trusted besides Tris. And even if it meant leaving her and any life I thought I may have had here in Dauntless behind to follow this man to god knows where, no matter what the situation was, I'd do it.

"Ava?" Eric says, his eyes staring deep into my core.

I startle him as I grab him by the front of his shirt and press my lips to his, he doesn't hesitate to return it like he had before. I run my fingers down the back of his neck and he groans into my lips, his hands finding their way up the back of my shirt. The skin to skin contact sends electricity up my spine causing me to gasp.

"I take that as a yes?" He smiles against my lips.

"I suppose it is."

The fear and intensity fills his face once again.

"This is serious Ava, you know that right?"

"I don't understand anything about what's happening," I sigh, "but I trust you, and I know you'll keep me safe."

"I'll fill you in on everything later, I promise, but right now, you need to go pack whatever clothes you have, don't say a word to anyone got that? Not even Tris, the less they know the better for them, believe me. We'll meet up by the tracks an hour after curfew."

I nod in understanding, though the panic was still evident in my face. Eric pulls me close once again, and kisses me deeply, before gently resting his forehead on mine. We stand there for a while, wrapped safely in each other's arms.

"Be safe." He finally whispers, releasing me from his grasp as we reluctantly part ways.


End file.
